City Hall has been quietly reviewing whether to change the sirens used by emergency vehicles as part of a wider noise pollution reduction effort that’s expected to be announced as early as the fall.

That includes possibly trading in the “whoop-whoop” siren that’s common in many police cars and ambulances for the gentler European rendition that’s more akin to an “Eeh-aw” sound.

“One of the things we need to look at is the way the sirens are set and how they’re used. The actual physical tone of the sirens – it needs to be effective obviously to save lives, but there’s different kinds of sirens around the world that are equally effective and some affront people a lot less,” the mayor said on WNYC radio Friday. “We’re looking at that right now.”

Hizzoner’s revelation that he had ordered Deputy Mayor for Operations Laura Anglin to conduct the siren survey and wider noise pollution review came in response to a caller to the mayor’s weekly call-in show.

The caller, identified as Bruce, complained that ambulances and police cars stuck in traffic continue to let their sirens wail even when it’s clear they can’t move.

“I cannot find a single half an hour of the day where I’m not being bombarded with this. What can be done?” Bruce asked the mayor. “This is really driving people insane.”

The mayor said the review of sirens would include better guidance on when first responders are allowed to use them, but that safety would be the key criteria.

“Everything we think about through the prism of protecting people, but we gotta live in the biggest city in this country and we gotta improve the quality of life,” he said.

City Hall officials said some results of the review could be ready by the fall, but they declined to discuss specifics.

Police and fire officials didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.